Minnamurra Rainforest near Jamberoo
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10 March 2016
Excited to be meeting up with cousins today, but we have time for some more sightseeing beforehand. First visit is to the Little Blowhole, which is quite near our accommodation at Easts Beach. We thought the morning was a good time, high tide at about 10am, so both the Little Blowhole, and the Kiama Blowhole should be working well.
The Little Blowhole was behaving well (right), not as spectacular as the Kiama Blowhole, but makes a great “whoosh” before it blows!
Next stop was exploring the area of the Kiama Blowhole, the Lighthouse, the Harbour and Black Bay. The Lighthouse (left) now has added to it the 2015 Anzac Centenary, as it steadfastly stands overlooking the ocean and the Blowhole.
Another nostalgic moment as I revisited the site of what was my parents’ home opposite Black Bay, now demolished – sadly, prime land where an almost complete commercial building now stands. Still a lovely view across Black Bay (right) to the Harbour and Kiama Point, even on a cloudy morning.
And then it was time to meet up for morning coffee with my cousins Gordon and Neil Blakey, both of whom live in the area. We met at the Amaki Cafe, in one of the historic cottages as you enter the town, and chatted for hours catching up about families and reminiscing about the past. Hopefully now that we have made contact again, we can see each other more often.
Our next adventure was to explore the hinterland behind Kiama, and after a short drive through lush green dairy country we arrived at the famous and historic Commercial Hotel at Jamberoo (below), where we called in for a light lunch of dips and sour dough bread.
Our destination was the Minnamurra Rainforest Walk and although it had turned into a very hot and humid day, the shade of the rainforest, and the calming sounds of the creeks and waterfalls were a relief.
Pete (below right) standing next to a giant (and one of the oldest) trees in the rainforest, with epiphytes (staghorns, lichen etc) growing on it. Below left, the entry to the rainforest walk and a pleasant stream.
By the time we arrived back at our cabin we were hot and tired and ready for a swim, so we headed off to the Kiama rock pool for a wonderfully refreshing dip. We decided to go into Kiama for dinner and found another restaurant among the Historic Cottages, The Hungry Monkey. You can see and read about the food on our journey here.
Tomorrow we head further south along the coastline, to our next stay at Mollymook.
